Poor Tesla. The better they do, the more money they loose. The LA Times reports that Tesla just announced revenue of $49 million over the first quarter of 2011, more than double the $20.8 million that they made a year ago. Over the past quarter they delivered record numbers of battery packs and chargers for the Daimler electric Smart Fortwo and the Toyota electric RAV4, which is due out next year. In spite of this income, Tesla still lost $48.9 million in the quarter, compared with loosing $29.5 million a year earlier. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, in a telephone call to Tiffany Hsu of the Times, said that he was optimistic about the company's prospects.
Last month Tesla opened a new store in San Jose's Santana Row retail center. It has hired more than 130 new employees - mostly in manufacturing, research and development. More than 1,650 Roadsters have been delivered internationally and the model is expected to sell out by the end of the year.
No one seems to be getting rich yet in the EV field.
